A model program was designed and implemented to effectively develop and maintain communication skills in the children of an urban K-6 school. The goals of the program were to reverse a trend in under-achievement in five academic areas, to identify and develop potential in communication skills in two targeted groups of children, to create staff…

A pilot writing program was tested on 15 Florida eleventh graders, who had been placed in basic level classes and who believed themselves to be poor writers. After interviews with teachers and students, three practicum objectives were developed: (1) after 12 weeks, 80% of the target group will score a minimum of 3 on short composition assignments;…

A total of 162 elementary school children who were underachieving in reading were selected to participate in a supplementary program that used paperback books to improve reading competency. Exit scores were predicted for each student. The program focused on the following components: encouraging students to read from a wide selection of readily…

A practicum addressed the cognitive and affective needs of underachieving fifth grade students in a suburban school in southwest Florida. Twelve fifth grade students (the target group) were paired with same age tutors who provided supplemental reading instruction four times a week over a 12-week period. They also participated in weekly…

A practicum was designed to solve the problem of the lack of desire to read and the poor quality of the reading of 65 inner city underachieving basic skills students. Objectives were to increase motivation to read among the students and to improve the quality of their oral, silent, and reading comprehension skills. Incentives for reading enjoyment…

A student researcher at a nonprofit, university-based family center for learning-disabled and underachieving students designed and implemented a 7-week practicum intervention meant to improve the ability of four first and second grade level students to use reasoning skills. Piagetian theory regarding expected levels of cognitive development was…

This study was designed to improve the academic achievement of 35 third- and fourth-grade underachievers through improved self-esteem. Specific goals included focusing on self-concept and learning skills reinforcement, with the ultimate goal of increasing academic performance and motivation. Large group sessions with students focused on…

Fear of success in a group of high school students (N=127) was studied, with research findings supporting the following generalizations: (1) high school students with an intermediate level of self-esteem have greater fear of success than those with high and low levels of self-esteem; (2) high school students with BSRI (Bem Sex Role Inventory)…

A personalized parenting program was implemented to address poor academic performance and low self-esteem of high school students. Student records, the Coopersmith Self-Esteem Inventory, the Behavior Evaluation Scale, and teacher surveys were employed to identify and measure academic and/or self-perception growth. Parents participated in an 8-week…

A team of three educators developed and implemented a reading improvement program for first through sixth grade students who displayed discrepancies between their reading achievement and reading abilities. The program involved 283 underachieving students at seven elementary schools. The goal of the program was to provide intervention strategies…

This practicum was designed to help five bright but underachieving fourth grade students in four classes regain their enthusiasm for learning through a multi-pronged approach with parents, students, classroom teachers, and specialists. Two workshops on learning styles and differentiated instruction were held for classroom teachers. Communication…

In response to the poor achievement, negative attitudes, and anxiety of limited-English-proficient (LEP) ninth-grade students (n=90) in science classes, a cooperative learning approach to instruction was adopted. In an effort coordinated with teachers of English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL), the students were assigned to cooperative…

The purpose of this practicum was to develop a program to increase high school juniors' and seniors' academic achievement by one grade level, their self-esteem by one level (as measured by the North York Secondary School Self-Concept Inventory), and to increase parent positive responses and interest in the program and its continuation. Examination…

This practicum was designed to enhance methods and procedures used with 15 low-achieving, disinterested, and disruptive seventh grade students assigned to a middle school's alternative education program. The primary goal of the practicum was to increase students' responsibility for their own actions and their attention to learning. A secondary…

A study is reported that investigated whether the foreign language learning outcomes of the poorest performers in Finnish schools could be improved by intensive remedial teaching. An experimental approach was taken with a group of 12 sixth grade students in a suburban school in Helsinki. Four were poor, four were average, and four were good…